Exposed or hidden

The course instructors told students to apply head cement to the head of the finished fly with a bodkin. Any fly tier can easily make a better tool for this job. Drill a tiny hole into a short piece of three-eighths of an inch wooden dowel. Place a two-and-a-half-inch length of .013 brass wire, available at Michael’s craft store, into the hole and cement it in place using a flexible type of glue. This will allow you to pick up the tiniest drop of cement on the tip of the brass wire. Even on size 24s or 26s, there will be little chance of getting head cement into the hook eye. After watching two straight nights of presentations by “Fishy” Fullum, I’d bet this little tool would catch his eye.